


Almost Easy

by WandaRavenBlack



Category: DCU (Comics), Titans (TV 2018)
Genre: Apologies, Dick Grayson is Renegade, Explanations, F/M, Fights, Hurt Dick Grayson, Hurt/Comfort, Parent Slade Wilson, Past Child Abuse, Stockholm Syndrome
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-12-03
Updated: 2020-11-02
Packaged: 2021-02-18 13:10:36
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 9,408
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21661345
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/WandaRavenBlack/pseuds/WandaRavenBlack
Summary: After hearing the truth about Jericho's death, the Titans are ready to split up. But a mysterious guest and some unexpected truths make them reconsider.
Relationships: Dawn Granger/Hank Hall, Dick Grayson & Donna Troy, Dick Grayson & Grant Wilson, Dick Grayson & Raven, Dick Grayson/Koriand'r, Koriand'r & Garfield Logan & Raven
Comments: 54
Kudos: 208





	1. They Have To Know

“My brother is dead because of you.” 

Dick looked even more guilty than before. Rose was opening her mouth to say something more, but was cut off by a male voice coming from the hallway to the elevator. 

“No, he isn’t.” 

Everyone turned towards where a man was walking inside. He was dressed casually in jeans and a black hoodie. But they all saw the knife handle slightly sticking out of his boot and the gun strapped to his belt. His brown hair was down to his shoulders and his brown eyes had almost a threatening look in them. He looked around the room, before his stare settled on Rose again. 

“He is dead because of Deathstroke. If you want to blame someone, then blame him.” 

Then he turned to Hank. 

“And you. Lay a hand on him again, and I’ll make sure you lose it.” 

Dick opened his mouth to protest, but the man just pointed his finger at him, not even turning in his direction. 

“Silence.” 

To everyone’s surprise, Dick’s mouth snapped shut again. And the man continued, looking at the three original Titans. 

“What were you all thinking? If I remember correctly, Deathstroke had killed a bunch of amazons and almost killed you.” 

He pointed at Donna. 

“How could any of you let Dick go there to face him alone? And how could any of you blame him for not beating Deathstroke? Sure, Dick was trained by the best, but he is an ordinary human. I mean, for fucks sake, he was just 22. Did any of you go there to even check on him? To see if he needed help? To see if he was even alive?! You should all be grateful that you found one body and not two that day. And you.” 

He turned towards the younger Titans. 

“None of you were here, so don’t judge Dick’s actions based on what everyone else is saying. None of the Titans were in that church. Only Dick can tell you what really happened. Oh, and Rose. Know all the facts before you start pointing fingers. Your brother’s killer is still out there. Dick did all he could to protect him. It was Joey’s choice to jump in front of that sword. He could have stayed where he was. Deathstroke would have killed Dick and then left. It was Dick he wanted to take down.” 

Suddenly, Dick’s quiet voice could be heard from behind him. 

“You think he would have done it?” 

The man turned towards him. 

“You think he would have killed me?” 

Everyone looked either confused or shocked at that question. The man sighed. 

“Honestly? I don’t know. After all that happened, he would have every reason to. And yet, he never did it.” 

Dick looked at the floor for a moment, before taking a deep breath and looking up again. 

“What are you doing here?” 

The man walked over to a couch and sat down, pointing towards the low table. Obediently, Dick sat down on it. Everyone was surprised. Dick was a leader. He was always the one in charge. Why was he suddenly doing whatever this newcomer said? 

“I’m here for two reasons. One is bad, the other is worse. I’ll start with the bad. I heard that one…” 

He pointed at Jason. 

“Say that Titans are back. And then the news about someone falling from a high building and being caught by someone. I realized that it meant Deathstroke was back and he would be coming after you. So I packed up and took the first flight I could get on. Got in contact with some of my old… acquaintances here and they said that Deathstroke is indeed back, and has declared war on the Titans. That’s why I came here. And in the right moment.”

He glared at Hank again and the man huffed out an irritated breath. 

“Look. I don’t know who you are but you can’t just waltz in here and…” 

He took a few steps towards him and a few of the others noticed Dick’s eyes widening slightly. With one fluid movement, the man stood up from the couch and, in the same move, got Hank on the ground. He smirked down at him and then sat down again. Hank picked himself up and backed away to Dawn and Donna. Meanwhile, the man continued talking, as if he hadn’t been interrupted at all.

“But that’s not the only reason I’m here. I heard rumours that Deathstroke is planning something big. Whatever it is, I’m not going to let you face it alone.”    
Once again, Dick looked ready to protest, but was stopped by the man glaring at him.

“Don’t argue. We are in this together. I’m not leaving you.” 

“But…” 

“No. Joey wasn’t your fault. We all know that. Even Deathstroke.” 

Dick flew up from the table. 

“How is it not my fault? Joey would never get dragged into this world if I hadn’t gone to him. If I hadn’t pulled him into this. He would have kept living, thinking that Deathstroke is a wonderful father. He wouldn’t know. And it would be much better for him. I knew what Deathstroke was capable of, and I still risked Joey’s life.” 

The man let his head fall forwards for a moment, his hair covering his face. When he looked up again, he had a tired look in his eyes. 

“Dick. Sit down.” 

The acrobat stared at him for a minute, before he flopped down on the table again. Very slowly, Kory stood up, walked over to the table and sat down behind Dick. As gently as she could, she put her hand on his shoulder. The older man looked at her with a calculating gaze, before turning to Dick again. 

“Listen to me. You know what happened to us. We didn’t seek him out. He found us. He made our life a living hell. It was just a matter of time before he got tired of playing a good dad and went after Joey. You tried to stop it.” 

Dick shook his head. 

“No. I didn’t. Not because of Joey. After we got away and split up, I swore to never go anywhere close to Deathstroke again. Whatever happened, whatever I found out about him and his life. I would never go near him again. And then he killed Garth. And I lost it. I didn’t care what I had to do. Who I had to use. I didn’t know Joey. I didn’t know what he was like. And then, when he told us about Deathstroke. About them being a normal family. I found out about his powers and all I wanted to do was to help him. And look how it ended.” 

Donna, who had been watching the scene in silence, suddenly stood up and took a few cautious steps towards them. 

“Wait a second now. Who the fuck are you and what are you talking about?” 

The man looked at Dick with raised eyebrows. 

“You didn’t tell them?” 

Dick shook his head again. 

“No. I… I couldn’t.” 

The man flew up from his seat. 

“Oh for fucks sake! Richard John Grayson, what is wrong with you?!” 

Dick let his head fall down, refusing to look at the man. 

“No wonder you’re all so torn up. None of you know the full story. Alright. Let’s make this right. First of all, Dick. You go clean the blood off your face. Come back after that, and we’ll tell the story together.” 

“I don’t…” 

“Richard. Either you tell it with me, or I will tell it myself. Either way, they have to know. Otherwise they will go on blaming you forever. Now go clean up.” 

Behind Dick, Kory nodded. 

“He’s right, Dick. No more lies and secrets.” 

He glanced at her and then stood up. 

“Fine. But they won’t be happy.” 

The man smirked. 

“Well, thankfully for you, I inherited his strength. Could come in handy. Oh, and Dick. Your gun. You, sadly, inherited his intelligence and madness, so I’m not going to take any chances.” 

Very slowly, Dick pulled his gun out and stretched it over to the man. 

“You know, I found Billy. And he said that he doesn’t know which one of us is crazier.” 

“Depends on the day. Now go.” 

With a nod, Dick left. The man turned to the others, making sure that he saw everyone except for Kory straight on. Kory was standing a bit to the side and some of the Titans recognized it as a sign that the man had at least a little bit of trust towards her. 

“Wintergreen used to say that he is the buffer between Dick and Deathstroke. And he was right. He’s most probably the only one who can talk some reason into Deathstroke. And, since I’m most probably the only one Dick will actually listen to, I will act as a buffer between him and you. I won’t let him lie to you again, but I also won’t let any of you hurt him. You try, and you’ll find yourself with some lead in your body.” 

Jason stood up with a frown. 

“That’s all good and nice, but who the fuck are you?” 

The man looked him up and down, before sighing. 

“My name is Grant Wilson. I’m Deathstroke’s oldest child.” 


	2. Stockholm Syndrome

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY HOLIDAYS!

Rose frowned and stood up, her hands closing into fists. 

“You can’t be.” 

He smiled with amusement. 

“Why not? Because he didn’t tell you about me? Because he decided to keep one of his greatest failures and best achievements away from you? Because he told you that you were special and that he wanted your help, and that he would do anything for you since you are him daughter?” 

The girl took a step back, her eye widening. Grant shook his head. 

“He is a liar. He fed me and Dick lies ever since we were children. He thought he could control us. That we would believe him. I was stupid enough to do it. I let myself spiral.” 

“It wasn’t your fault.” 

Dick walked back into the room, his face cleaned off. He flopped down on the table again, Kory sitting down next to him. Grant remained standing, and the Titans noticed that he was still holding the gun he had taken from Dick. Rose sat down again, while Donna frowned. 

“Wait a second. You said that he fed you and Dick lies since you were children. But when we met Deathstroke, Dick was almost 22.” 

Dick closed his eyes, visibly not knowing what to do. Grant nodded. 

“You know what? I’ll start from the beginning. Six years after the experiments that were performed on him, Slade met my mother. They hooked up a few times, but it never got serious. He left and, nine months later, I was born. My mother was a drug addict and we never had enough food. Life was hard for us.” 

Dick took over, his voice a bit hesitant. 

“Two years later, Slade was on an assignment in Star City, when Haly’s Circus was there. He had a one night stand with one of the acrobats before he left. Nine months later, I was born.” 

“WHAT?!” 

Donna flew up to her feet, her eyes wide open. 

“You…” 

She seemed at a loss for words. Grant’s hand tightened on the gun, when he noticed how Dick shrunk back a bit. 

“Sit down, Themysciran.” 

Seeing his glare, she sat down again, shock still on his face. Jason leaned forward a bit, making sure to not seem too threatening. 

“Dick.” 

He waited until the man looked over to him. 

“Does Bruce know?” 

Dick shrugged. 

“I don’t know. I never told him, but he could know.” 

Jason nodded and leaned back again. Suddenly, Hank stood up, anger clear on his face. 

“That means Jericho is your brother. You used your own brother to get to Deathstroke. Why? Why not use yourself, huh? Why did you have to drag the kid into it?” 

“Because he wouldn’t have come out for me!” 

Dick’s voice broke slightly and he took a calming breath. Grant glanced down at him, before turning to Hank. 

“Sit down. I’m already mad at you. And I don’t have any problems with shooting people who annoy me.” 

Hank glared at him, but sat down when Dawn pulled at his arm. 

“Come on, Hank. Calm down. Let them explain.” 

Grant continued the story. 

“I stayed with my mother until I was 10. Things were really hard and I figured out real quick that I was way stronger than most grown up men when I was around six or seven. I used to fight around on the streets to get money. When I was 10, Slade suddenly showed up. He had heard about me and realized that I must be his child. By that time Joey was six and Rose was 4. My mother tried to argue with him but, because of her addiction, she had no real way to keep me away from him. She would have lost in a court. So she agreed to let him take me away. He took me to his house in Bludhaven and started training me. I was 13 when I took my first life. After that, I didn’t even think about what I was doing. He told me to steal? I stole. He told me to torture? I tortured. He told me to kill? I killed. He was my father. He acted like he actually cared. For a child who pretty much grew up on the streets fighting, what Slade did wasn’t so odd. I didn’t realize that there was a different way until he brought Dick home.” 

Everyone turned to the younger man and he took a deep breath, before taking over. 

“I grew up thinking that John Grayson was my father. My mom didn’t want me to know that my father was a mercenary. I was eight when mom and dad were murdered by Zucco. Bruce was in the circus when it happened and he adopted me. He trained me to be Robin and, for some years, that was enough. Then, when I was 16, me and Bruce were in a bad fight and I told him that I wanted to spend some time alone. I moved to Bludhaven and heard about Slade and Grant. I wanted to find them and take them down to prove to Bruce that I could take care of myself. That I was just as good as him. My tries got me in a few fights with Slade. He won every single one of them, but it seemed to amuse him that I always came back for more, so he never killed me. Then, one day, I got myself captured by him. He wanted to figure out who I was, so he took my blood and checked my DNA. Figured out that I was his son and decided to train me. I wasn’t very cooperative. I refused to call him ‘father’. I refused to be called Wilson. I refused to listen to him. I kept rebelling. And then he sent Grant away.” 

Grant nodded.

“Having Dick around opened my eyes to how different my life could be. I tried to protect him from Slade’s anger, but it was almost impossible. Dick had a knack for pissing him off. But, having me there gave Dick some kind of normality. So I was sent away. During those seven months, Dick developed a bad case of Stockholm Syndrome. When I finally came back, he was a mess. I got mad at Slade, started fighting him. Dick jumped in between us, protecting Slade. He wouldn’t let me touch him. Slade locked me up in the basement of the house. I thought he would kill me. But then, one day, I heard him shouting at Dick. And he didn’t react. It seemed like such a normal thing for them. The shouting, the beating. I snapped. I knew I had to get Dick away from there. So I waited until Slade left and broke out. Dick didn’t want to go with me. He tried fighting me. I managed to knock him out and get him away from there. I went to Gotham and bought a flat. Dick… He tried to escape as soon as he woke up. He said he needed to go back. That Slade would be mad at him and he had to go back before he got punished. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to get onto Bruce’s radar, so sending Dick to a psychiatrist was out of question. I couldn’t even take him to a normal doctor for an exam. For the first two weeks, I had to keep him locked in a room. Couldn’t let him out of my sight for even a second. I tried talking to him about what had happened, but all he cared about was going back to Slade. So I did something that, in hindsight, seems very stupid and dangerous.” 

He got an, almost guilty look on his face and Dick, who had been keeping his eyes on the ground, looked up at him and smiled gently. 

“I know why you did it, Grant. I’m not mad at you.” 

Kory, who was the least shocked one, asked quietly: 

“What did you do?” 

Grant had by now collected himself, an emotionless look back on his face. 

“I reminded him of everything that had happened. There were recordings of the Graysons falling. I forced him to watch them for two days straight. I left them on even when he was asleep. He started having nightmares. He refused to talk to me. Then, after those two days, I started showing him pictures of Slade’s victims and telling him about how they had died. Every night, I would play the recording of his parents dying. After a week, he started begging me to stop. To kill him.” 

His voice broke slightly and Dick took over. 

“I didn’t know what to believe. My reality back then was very easy. Slade was my father. It didn’t matter what he did to me. I had to stay with him and do anything he told me. Whatever he did, I would agree. Grant showed me that it was wrong. He reminded me about my parents. About the circus. I hated him for messing everything up. I didn’t understand why he took me away. Life was so much easier when I was with Slade. But then he did something he should have done from the beginning. He brought up Bruce. Batman and his code. I had been doing all I could to follow it for years and bringing him up made me finally realize things. It made me think. I realized what Slade had done to me. Bruce had trained me to not let myself be brainwashed or mind controlled. When I was reminded about him, I managed to recognize what had happened to me as Stockholm Syndrome. But it took me over a month to start making my own decisions and stop waking up wanting to go back to him. Slade came after us. Grant had made a good job of keeping us away from him, but you can’t hide from Deathstroke. He found us, while my mind was still fragile. I almost went with him, but then I remembered. My parents falling to their deaths. And I told him that I’m a Grayson. That I don’t want anything to do with him. He told me that if I wanted to be a Grayson, he wouldn’t stop me. That I wasn’t his son anymore. And then he left. I was broken. I hated him, but loved him at the same time. I was still conflicted. So Grant did the only thing he could think of.” 

“I sent him to Bruce. Something I should have done from the beginning. And I left. I didn’t want Dick to have any connection to our family anymore. I moved to New York and became a mercenary. I contacted Dick only once after that. When I found out about Joey’s death. He told me what had happened and we met up to talk and mourn. Then we decided to part our ways again.” 

He looked at the other Titans. They were all too shocked by the story to even say anything. Kory was gently massaging Dick’s shoulder, the young man having tensed up when Jericho’s death was brought up. Grant sighed and sat down on the couch, waiting for the others to recover. 


	3. Call Bruce

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!!!

Donna was the first one to get over the shock. She stood up slowly and walked over to Dick. Grant’s hand tightened around the gun, but he didn’t move from his seat. Very slowly, Donna crouched down in front of Dick. 

“Why didn’t you tell me?” 

Dick sighed and looked down, clearly avoiding her eyes. 

“I couldn’t.” 

“I’m your friend, Dick. I’ve known you since you were a child! Why did you think that there was something you couldn’t tell me about?!” 

Dick’s head snapped up, tears in his eyes. 

“I couldn’t! Don’t you understand?! When he let me go, I wanted to get away. I didn’t want to think about that anymore! And then he killed Garth! How was I supposed to tell you that the man who killed the person you loved was my father?! How was I supposed to tell you that I was pulling my brother into a mess that I had created?!” 

Dawn frowned. 

“You had created? Deathstroke is the one who killed Garth. You weren’t involved in that.” 

Dick flew up from the table and started pacing around. 

“Why can’t any of you understand? I should never have left him. If I didn’t leave him, the Titans wouldn’t exist. Garth would be alive. Joey would still be alive. I should have stayed. I shouldn’t have let Grant take me away from there. It wasn’t even that bad. Sure, he’s abusive at best and a torturer at worst, but he is my father. He took care of…” 

“One more word, and I’ll make sure you have at least one broken bone.” 

Grant’s voice was low and threatening and Dick stopped dead in his tracks, his eyes widening. The older man stood up and advanced towards him and Dick took an instinctive step back. That made Grant stop. 

“He didn’t take care of you, Dick. He abused you and the power he had over you.” 

Jason frowned. 

“Dick?” 

Dick turned to him, something clearing in his eyes. 

“When you went to save me, you offered Slade an exchange. You for me and Rose. What did you think he would do to you?” 

At that question, everyone turned to Dick. 

“I didn’t know. I thought he would either kill me or force me to work with him again.” 

Jason nodded. 

“And when you saw me tied up?” 

Dick hesitated and that was answer enough. 

“You weren’t going to fight him, right? He had you again.” 

“Jason…” 

“No. I’m not mad at you, Dick. But this makes one thing clear. You can’t be anywhere near Slade. You fought him first when Kory started fighting him. I don’t know how, but she managed to snap you out of it. What happens if there is no one to do it the next time? What happens if you turn on us?” 

Dick wanted to say that it wouldn’t happen, but stopped himself before the first word even got out. Jason was right. Whether he liked it or not, Slade still had a hold on him. When he fought him, back in that church, he had been too blinded by rage to let himself think. But at the end, when Slade beat him up and dropped him on the floor, he was back in the mindset that had helped him survive all those months. Let him do it. Stay down. Don’t try fighting back because that will make him hit more. He had seen Joey stand up and run towards them. He had seen Slade pull out his sword. And yet he did nothing. Because, as long as he stayed down, Slade wouldn’t hurt him more. Slade wouldn’t be disappointed. He blacked out before he could try to do anything and woke up first when Hank started shaking him while Dawn cried over Joey’s body. The next time he saw Slade was when he went to save Jason. Having Slade shoot at him, stand over him like that, he couldn’t help it. He tried talking back, but he was scared. Because if he did too much, Slade would punish him. Not even seeing Jason tied up outside the window helped. First when Kory entered and fired at Slade, did he snap out of it. He even managed to fight Slade for a moment, but he didn’t put his all into it. Because he wasn’t supposed to win. That was one of the rules during training. He was expected to perform well. It could end up in a tie. But he wasn’t supposed to win. Not against Slade. Seeing Jason fall had made something inside of him break slightly. He had failed one brother already. Now he was failing another. If it hadn’t been for Conner, he didn’t even want to think about what could have happened. Jason would have died. Hit the ground, just like his parents had done in the circus. 

“Dick?” 

He looked at Jason again. 

“If I join Slade, you call Bruce. He’ll know what to do. He always does.” 

That seemed to be answer enough for Jason, because he nodded and leaned back in his chair again. Rose, who had been looking between Grant and Dick all the time, now took a deep breath. 

“Does he even care about any of his children?” 

Grant sighed and went back to his seat, flopping down onto it. 

“He cared about Joey. He saw me as someone he could shape into whatever he wanted. Dick was his way of showing everyone that he is not to be messed with. After all, he managed to take Batman’s golden boy and turn him into something dark and twisted. As for you, I don’t know. But I don’t think so. That man is incapable of thinking about anything other than himself.” 

Rose nodded slightly and seemed to sink into her thoughts again. Donna stood up from her crouching position and sat down on the table next to Kory. 

“Dick. Do you ever think about going back to him?” 

And, all of a sudden, Dick felt irritated. 

“When did this become a therapy session? There is nothing wrong with me. I hate Slade just as much as the rest of you do. Maybe even more. Is that what you wanted to hear?” 

Donna looked taken aback, but Grant just shook his head calmly. 

“I wouldn’t call it a therapy session, Dick. More like an interrogation.” 

“Well then this is the oddest interrogation I have ever seen.” 

At Dick’s sarcastic voice, Grant leaned forward while lifting the gun a bit to point it at Dick. 

“What? Do you want me to tie you to a chair and punch you a few times? No. That’s not how he did it. He was more fond of knives, wasn’t he?” 

Dick seemed to pale slightly, his eyes never leaving the gun. 

“You’ve made your point.” 

Grant frowned at him. 

“Good. Then answer the question.” 

“Yes, all right. Yes. I sometimes think about that. But I would never do that. Back when I was with Bruce, maybe. But after that? After joining the Titans? I wouldn’t. Especially not after Garth.” 

Donna exchanged a glance with Dawn, before asking quietly:

“But why? Why would you even think about going back to him?” 

Dick shook his head with an odd look on his face. 

“It’s just… It was easier back then. Not better, but easier.” 

Suddenly, Jason stood up and pulled his phone out. 

“We’re calling Bruce.” 

Dick’s eyes widened. 

“What? No! You can’t!” 

Grant glanced at Jason and nodded. 

“He’s right. If we’re going against Deathstroke, having Bruce on board will make things easier. Especially when you flip.” 

Everyone who was looking at Dick at that moment, noticed the anger that appeared on his face. 

“When I flip?” 

Grant didn’t seem to even react to the anger. 

“We both know that it’s a question of ‘when’ and not ‘if’. He can get into your head better than anyone. And, to be honest, I’m not sure I could beat you now. Not after all the training you got after Slade. You’re a danger, Dick. And I won’t let you hurt anyone.” 

“That’s rich coming from a mercenary.” 

Once again, Grant kept his calm. 

“You’re not like me, Dick. The day you pick up a gun and willingly shoot someone in the head, I will back off and let you do whatever you want. But until then, I’m going to do all I can to stop you from becoming Slade. From hurting your friends. Now sit and try to calm down. Todd. Call Bruce. Explain everything to him. You there.” 

He pointed at Kory. 

“Stay with Dick. You seem to be the only one with some common sense here.” 

“And what about you?” 

His head turned to Rose. 

“Me and my little sister need to have a serious talk.” 

And, not waiting for any answers, he marched over to Rose, grabbed her arm and dragged her out of the room. Jason hesitated for a few seconds, before walking out as well, the phone in his hand. Dick sighed in frustration and flopped down on the couch. This was not what he had planned from the beginning. 


	4. You Had It Planned

Grant dragged Rose to an empty room, pushed her inside and closed the door behind them. She glared at him. 

“What do you want?” 

He looked at her with a calm look. 

“You’re working for Deathstroke.” 

Rose’s glare intensified. 

“No. I’m not.” 

The man shook his head with a small smirk on his face. 

“I’m not stupid, kid. There is no way you just happened to run into the Titans and Dick at the same time that Deathstroke decided to make a comeback. He sent you here. I don’t know why. I don’t know what the plan is. What I do know is that Deathstroke almost killed Dick and that kid. Now, you are going to call him and give me the phone. And don’t try to argue or fight, or you will lose your other eye.” 

Rose kept glaring at him with anger, before pulling out her phone. 

“What are you going to do?” 

“That doesn’t concern you. Make the call.” 

She punched in the right numbers and gave him the phone. He put it on speaker and gave her a glare. 

“A single sound from you, and I’ll shoot you.” 

Rose nodded, just as the call went through. 

“Rose?” 

“No. It’s me.” 

Silence on the other side made Rose frown slightly. 

“Grant? How did you get this phone?” 

“Oh, don’t worry. The kid is alive. She’s cooperating so I have no reason to put her down.” 

Slade paused for a few seconds. When he spoke again, his voice was calm. 

“What do you want?” 

“I want you to stay away from Dick.” 

Slade laughed. 

“You must think I’m stupid. Grayson is the one I’m most interested in. I’m not going to just let him go.” 

Grant nodded. 

“Alright. What do you want?” 

“Excuse me?” 

“For staying away from Dick. What do you want?” 

Rose’s eye widened. She opened her mouth to say something, but closed it again when Grant pointed his gun at her and gave her a warning glare. 

“What are you willing to give me? See, Richard is a great asset and it would take much to convince me to leave him alone.” 

“As I said, what do you want? You know that I won’t hesitate to do anything.” 

Slade’s smirk could be heard in his voice. 

“I want the Titans dead. And I want Rose back. She could still be useful. You can start with what I was interrupted with. Kill that kid. I don’t care how. Although dropping him from a height would be preferable.” 

“Deal.” 

He ended the call without another word and put the phone in his pocket. 

“I’ll hang on to this for now.” 

He walked over to the door, before turning towards Rose again. 

“Oh, and if you try to tell the Titans about what you just heard, I will kill you. Slowly. Painfully. Understood?” 

Rose hesitated, before nodding quickly. 

“Good. Let’s go.” 

And he marched out of the room, Rose hurrying after him. They walked back to the main room where Jason was already sitting on one of the chairs. Dick looked up when he saw them. 

“Grant?” 

“Everything’s fine. She’s not working with Deathstroke. Don’t worry about it. What did Bruce say?” 

“He’ll be here soon. Taking the Batplane. He told us to not do anything until he’s here.” 

Grant nodded. 

“Then we don’t do anything until he gets here.” 

He looked thoughtfully at Dick, before nodding. 

“How about some food? I haven’t eaten since yesterday evening and…” 

“And food will have to wait.”

Everyone’s heads snapped to where Bruce Wayne was standing in the doorway. He glared at Grant, the young man giving him a glare back. Jason stood up and grinned. 

“Bruce?” 

The man turned to Dick, a frown on his face. 

“You have some explaining to do. All of you. But you especially. Why was I not contacted when Jason was kidnapped? He could have been killed. I sent him with you to keep him safe, Dick.” 

Dick looked down at the floor with shame. Seeing that, Jason took a few steps closer. 

“It wasn’t his fault. I…” 

“Everything that goes on with Deathstroke usually comes back to Dick.” 

Grant tilted his head. 

“You sent him away with Dick because you thought you couldn’t protect him, didn’t you? Joker and Penguin escaped Arkham again. You wanted to get him out of Gotham.” 

Dick and Jason looked at Bruce with wide eyes. 

“Joker is on the loose?” 

“Not anymore. Wilson. You and I need to speak. Privately. The rest of you stay here.” 

And he marched out of the room. Grant shook his head with a laugh. 

“That guy has no manners at all.” 

His hand moved towards his gun, but then he shook his head again and followed Bruce out, giving Rose a hard stare on his way out. Rachel turned to Dick with a frown. 

“What just happened?” 

Jason shrugged and flopped down onto the couch again. 

“That’s Bruce.” 

*****

Grant followed Bruce into the same room that he had taken Rose to before. The man locked the door after them and turned to Grant with a glare. 

“I had Rose’s phone tapped when Dick told me about her.” 

Grant nodded. 

“I know.” 

“Then you also know I heard your conversation with Deathstroke.” 

Another nod. 

“Yeah. I guessed you had. Just as I made sure Rose heard every word.” 

“You don’t trust her.” 

Grant laughed, walked over to a chair and sat down. 

“Trust her? She’s working for Deathstroke. There is no way I would trust her. I needed her to believe that I’m working with Deathstroke. This way I have her under control. She won’t tell him anything because she won’t know what I told him. This way we don’t have to worry about her.” 

“You’re playing at two fronts.” 

The young man raised his eyebrows. 

“You know that my only priority in this world is Dick. I’ll do whatever I have to to keep him safe.” 

Bruce studied him for a few seconds, before nodding and sitting down as well. 

“I can’t let you kill the Titans. But I have another plan. One that I will need your help with.” 

“I’m listening.” 

“I need Jackal and Renegade to make one more run. One that Renegade won’t come back from.” 

Grant’s mouth opened but no sound came out of it. He tried a few times, before he managed to push some words out. 

“You want what?!” 

He flew up to his feet and started pacing around. 

“Dick dying won’t stop anything.” 

Bruce flinched slightly. 

“I’m not talking about killing him. I would never do that.” 

“Then what…? Oh. You want to give him over to Slade. And for what? Robin’s life? The Titans?” 

“His retirement and imprisonment.” 

Grant frowned. 

“There is no cell in the world that could hold Deathstroke.” 

“I have one prepared for him in Arkham. Once he’s in there, he never gets out. But we need him to let his guard down. And that’s where Dick comes in. If Slade has him, he will get distracted. Make a mistake. We go in, take him down, get Dick home.” 

For almost a minute, they stared at each other in silence. Then, Grant shook his head with a nasty smirk. 

“You bastard. You had it planned all along, didn’t you? As soon as you heard about Deathstroke being back.” 

Bruce nodded. 

“And why are you telling me this? Why not contact Slade and give Dick over to him yourself?” 

“Because you would stop at nothing to stop me from doing that. And that would be an unnecessary annoyance. I need to know you won’t get in my way.” 

“You know, Dick once told me that you don’t have a conscience. I didn’t think it would be this bad. But I’m starting to see it now.” 

He laughed quietly. 

“And I thought Deathstroke was bad.” 

Then he got serious again. 

“But you are right. I’m not going to let you do this. Dick was damaged after the first time Deathstroke had him. I don’t wanna think about what will happen to him if he has to go through it again.” 

“Stockholm Syndrome is certain. But he’ll be alive.” 

Grant sighed heavily. He seemed to think hard about it, pacing around the room for a few minutes, before he nodded. 

“Alright. If we do this, we’re going to put him in a mental hospital after. He’ll get the help he needs. The help you should have given him when I left him with you. Understood?” 

Bruce nodded. 

“I understand. Now, let’s figure out how to give Dick to Deathstroke without anyone suspecting anything.” 

Grant rolled his eyes. 

“Leave that to me.” 

Then he pulled out his gun and pointed it at Bruce’s head, making sure to keep enough distance between them to not let Bruce grab it. 

“But let me make one thing clear. If anything happens to Dick, and I mean ANYTHING, you’ll get to see your parents much faster than you expected.” 


	5. What Happened?

Grant and Bruce came back into the main room, where the others were still waiting for them. Grant walked over to Dick and put his hand on his shoulder. The young man looked up at him, his eyes questioning. 

“We have a plan.” 

Donna frowned. 

“And you didn’t think it necessary to go through it with us?” 

Bruce gave her a glare, but she just glared right back. Meanwhile, Dick was still looking at Grant. They seemed to have a silent conversation between them, before Dick nodded. 

“Alright. What do you need me to do?” 

The older brother gave him a small smile. 

“You and I are going to put on our old costumes and go out there. Grab his attention. Then, as soon as we have him in the right place, Bruce will spring a trap. Everything has been thought out.” 

Hank frowned. 

“And what do we do?” 

Bruce’s glare shifted over to him, this time having a slight effect. 

“You stay here. I don’t want any of you to destroy the plan. Am I making myself clear?” 

Kori shook her head. 

“We’re not going to let Dick go out there without any backup. Especially now that Deathstroke is after him.” 

Grant turned to her. 

“Don’t worry. I’ll be with him all the time. I won’t let anything happen to him.” 

“But…” 

Kori started talking again, but was cut off by Dick. 

“Kori. It’s fine. I trust Grant with my life.” 

An odd look crossed Grant’s face, before he smiled again. 

“Come on, let’s get changed. You still have the suit, right?” 

Dick nodded. 

“Yeah. I… I couldn’t bring myself to throw it away.” 

“Good. Go on.” 

Without a word, Dick stood up and left the room. Grant looked around, before leaving as well. He went out to the corridor, where he had left a suitcase with his suit in. He always carried it around, even though he never wore it anymore. His days as Jackal had ended the moment he found Dick in that house. The moment his little brother had tried to protect their father. As he closed the door to a random bedroom behind him, he thought back to that day. 

*****

_ Grant walked into the house and threw his suitcase next to the coat rack. He kicked off his shoes and stretched. It was good to be back in a place where he didn’t have to look over his shoulder every other minute. With a deep breath, he walked further into the house.  _

_ “Dad? Dick? I’m back!”  _

_ He heard a crash somewhere in the house and quick steps. Dick came running down the stairs. Seeing him, Grant smiled. But his smile fell when he noticed the state his little brother was in. Dick’s hair had grown to his shoulders and was dirty and tangled. He had a bruise on his cheek and a small cut on his lip. He was dressed in old tattered jeans and a black t-shirt that was clearly too big on him. He looked tired and way too thin. On his neck were bruises that he recognized as signs of strangling. Dick’s eyes were wide open and he looked worried. Quickly, he put his finger to his lips. Grant frowned.  _

_ “Dick? What the hell happened to you?”  _

_ Dick shook his head.  _

_ “Shhh. Dad is asleep.”  _

_ Grant went a bit closer to him, but stopped when the boy flinched. Making sure that his voice wasn’t more than a whisper, he asked again.  _

_ “What happened to you, Dickie?”  _

_ Dick lowered his head.  _

_ “I… I acted up. Didn’t do what dad told me to.”  _

_ Grant’s eyes widened.  _

_ “Dad did this to you?”  _

_ Dick nodded, before hurrying to explain.  _

_ “But it’s alright. I… It was my fault. I know what I did wrong and I got punished for that. It’s alright. Don’t worry.”  _

_ “Don’t… Don’t worry?! Dick, you look terrible! How can you tell me not to worry?!”  _

_ Dick’s eyes widened.  _

_ “Please, keep quiet.”  _

_ He looked ready to cry. Grant felt fury filling him.  _

_ “I’m going to kill him.”  _

_ He pushed past Dick and ran up the stairs. Dick hurried after him and grabbed his arm, but he just pushed him away, making the boy stumble a few steps backwards. He rushed into their father's bedroom, just as the man was standing up from his bed.  _

_ “Grant. What are you…” _

_ He didn’t give Slade a moment to finish the question. As soon as he saw him, he punched. The hit was so unexpected that Slade was pushed back by it. He looked up and almost got punched again. In the last second, Grant stopped his fist when Dick suddenly jumped in between them. Slade stood up straight and smirked. Grant’s hand twitched towards his gun, but he stopped himself when he noticed the determined look on Dick’s face. His brother was ready to take a bullet for their father.  _

_ “What the hell have you done to Dick?”  _

_ Slade tilted his head.  _

_ “I made sure he stays where he belongs.”  _

_ Grant looked down at Dick.  _

_ “Step aside.”  _

_ The boy shook his head.  _

_ “No. I won’t let you hurt dad.”  _

_ Seeing that he wouldn’t be able to get through to him, Grant looked at Slade instead.  _

_ “Send him away. We need to talk.”  _

_ Slade seemed to think it through, before nodding.  _

_ “Richard. Go to the kitchen and prepare lunch. I will be down shortly.”  _

_ Dick seemed to be torn, but his obedience showed when he nodded and hurried out of the room. As soon as the door closed behind him, Grant pulled out his gun.  _

_ “I’ll ask only one more time. What the hell have you done to Dick?”  _

_ Slade smirked.  _

_ “I had to show him his place. He was too defiant. Fought back all the time. I had to break him down and build him up again. Now, he is perfect.”  _

_ “Perfect?! He is pretty much a slave!”  _

_ Slade’s voice carried a warning in it.  _

_ “You better watch your tone, Grant.”  _

_ “Or what? Nothing you say or do could scare me. You trained me too well for that. Face it, Deathstroke, I’m your greatest achievement. And your worst failure. Because, even though I’m a paid mercenary, I will never be like you.”  _

_ He paused and lowered his gun.  _

_ “I’m leaving. And I’m taking Dick with me. Don’t bother looking for us, because you won’t find us.”  _

_ He turned away from Slade and started heading towards the door, when he felt a hard hit on his head and everything became black.  _

_ ***** _

In hindsight, that had been a mistake. Turning away from Slade. Losing focus. But he had been so set on getting to Dick and getting him out of there, that he didn’t think straight. He had let his guard down. A foolish mistake. As he grabbed his helmet and looked at it, something in him hesitated. Could he do this? Could he really put Dick through this again? Then he closed his eyes and took a deep breath. He had to do it. Slade needed to be taken down. At any cost. He walked out of the room and back to the living room. Everyone turned to him, taking in his grey and orange suit. Seconds later, Dick walked inside in his red and black Renegade suit. He looked at Grant and stopped in the middle of a step. Grant quickly walked over to him and put a hand on Dick’s shoulder. 

“It’ll be fine. Just trust me, alright?” 

He hated the way Dick nodded at him. He hated the blind faith his brother had in him. He hated how easily he could manipulate Dick. How much he was like Slade in that moment. 


	6. Get Our Brother Back

Grant and Dick swung from roof to roof, sometimes stopping for a few seconds, before continuing. They stopped a robbery and helped two kids who had gotten lost, before Grant pointed down to a dark alley. Dick nodded and they both landed there. Grant put his hand on his brother’s shoulder and squeezed it. 

“Just relax, Dickie.” 

Dick looked at him with worry, so he smiled, before remembering that it wasn’t visible through his helmet. 

“It’s going to be fine. Trust me.” 

Dick nodded again and Grant wanted to curse. He hated this. Really hated this. But, before he could even think about backing out, he heard a thump behind him. Both vigilanties turned around, Grant making sure that he was standing between Dick and Deathstroke. Slade was standing there without his helmet on. He looked at his oldest son and frowned. 

“You said you wanted to meet me.” 

He took in their suits and the way Dick was clearly unsure about what was happening. 

“I’m guessing that you two aren’t here to tell me that you are ready to come back.” 

Grant shook his head but, before he could say anything else, Batman landed next to Dick. Slade smirked. 

“Bruce Wayne. I have to say this is a surprise.” 

Bruce just stared at him, clearly waiting. Grant took a deep breath. So that’s how it would be. He turned back to his father and said in a calm voice. 

“We have a deal for you.” 

Dick glanced at him with worry, but didn’t say anything. Slade noticed the look and raised his eyebrows, but didn’t comment on it. 

“Really. And what would that be?” 

This time, Bruce took over. 

“You let the Titans live. You don’t pick any fights with them anymore. And you leave Rose alone.” 

Slade tilted his head. 

“That’s much to ask for. I don’t think you have anything I could want enough to leave it all.” 

Without a word, Bruce glanced at Dick. Slade looked slightly confused for a few seconds, before understanding appeared in his eyes and he grinned. 

“Well, well. Not what I expected, but it would be payment enough.” 

Dick looked first at Bruce and then at Grant. 

“Wait, what? What am I missing?” 

Slade turned to Grant. 

“You know, I might have expected it from Batman. Everyone knows that he doesn’t have a heart. But you? I’ve seen what you are prepared to do to protect Richard. And now you’re just giving him over to me? Knowing what I will do to him? What I will make him do.” 

Dick’s eyes widened and he took a step back. 

“What? Grant?” 

The young man started to reach for his bo-staff, only to fall down to the ground when Bruce suddenly hit him over the head. His eyes looked unfocused as he looked up at Grant. There was so much pain and fear on his face that the mercenary had to turn away. This was too much. He knew that Slade was looking at him, but ignored it. He ignored them all. He knew that he had to. Otherwise he would fight. Otherwise, he would do anything he could to protect his little brother. Bruce nodded. 

“That’s the deal. You back off, and we’ll let you take him.” 

Dick, still stunned from the hit, tried to sit up, only to fall down again and finally pass out. Slade smirked. 

“Deal.” 

With another nod, Bruce turned to Grant. 

“We’re leaving.” 

And, when he didn’t get any answer, he took a step towards him. 

“Wilson.” 

Grant twitched, before simply walking away. He couldn’t stay anymore. Not if he was going to go through with this plan. Not if Wayne wanted him to remain calm. He heard Wayne following him, and then Slade’s laugh. That was all he could take before he took off in a sprint, pulling off his mask as he ran. It was suffocating him. He had to get away from there. He didn’t even notice that his feet had brought him back to the tower. That he was standing there in front of the building, just staring at it. A few seconds later, the door opened and Kori stepped outside. 

“Where is Dick?” 

He looked at her with an empty look on his face and she shook her head. 

“Grant. Where is Dick?” 

When he still didn’t answer, she grabbed his arm and dragged him inside the building. Then she closed the door, making sure to activate the alarm, before she started to pull him upstairs. He followed her, the blank look still on his face. When they walked into the common room, everyone was there. Donna immediately stood up when she noticed them. 

“Where is Dick?” 

Before Grant could even form an answer, Bruce walked out of the elevator in his normal clothes. Kori got a quick thought about how the man had gotten past the alarm, but pushed it away when she saw that Dick wasn’t with him either. 

“Alright. We’re going to ask just one more time. Where is Dick?” 

Bruce walked over to the couch and sat down. 

“Don’t worry. This is part of the plan. We traded Dick for Slade’s word that he will back off. As soon as his full focus is on Dick, we’ll be able to go in and take him down.” 

Everyone was frozen for almost an entire minute, before Rachel’s eyes suddenly turned red. The darkness appeared around her and attacked Bruce with such speed that he didn’t even have time to think about protecting himself. It threw him against the wall, pulled him to the middle of the room again and then threw him back at the wall. It happened three more times, before Rachel finally calmed down enough to let him go. Bruce fell to the ground, unconscious, with blood coming out of a wound on his head. Kori, who was still holding Grant’s shoulder, turned him around and glared at him. 

“Do you know where he is right now?” 

Grant barely reacted. Donna frowned, before walking over to them, grabbing Grant’s shoulders and turning him to her. 

“Grant Wilson. Listen to me. Dick is my brother. I love and care about him. And I know you do too. I know that you would rather see the world burn than get Dick hurt.” 

His eyes focused on her. Donna nodded. 

“Exactly. Then why don’t you help me set some things on fire and get our brother back.” 

He looked around, his eyes taking in the Titans staring at him with anticipation. Then he turned back to Donna. 

“Don’t expect me to not kill.” 

“If it gets us Dick back, don’t hold back.” 

Grant nodded. 

“Let me get out of this suit first.” 

And he left the room. Donna turned to the others. 

“Does Dick have any tracers on him?” 

Jason nodded. 

“Yeah. I’ll hook up my phone to the computer and track him down.” 

Gar and him hurried out of the room. Kori looked down at Bruce. 

“What are we doing with him?” 

Donna hesitated, before an evil smile appeared on her face. 

“I’ll call Diana and tell her what he did. She can deal with him.” 

Kori turned to Rose. 

“And what about you? Will you help us?” 

Rose seemed to consider it thoughtfully. Then she suddenly flopped down onto a couch and started to shake her head. 

“Why is this happening?” 

Dawn sat down next to her and put a hand on her shoulder. 

“Why is what happening?” 

“My father killed one of my brothers, and abused another. My oldest brother is a mercenary who let Dick be taken away, knowing what would happen to him. Why can’t our family just be normal?” 

The woman pulled her into a hug, holding her close even when the girl tensed up.

“We could be your family.” 

She pulled away from her and Rose looked away. Just then, Grant came back inside. He was in his normal clothes and there was murder in his eyes. He turned to Kori. 

“What now? Do we know where Dick is?” 

“No.” 

Everyone turned to where Jason and Gar were standing in the doorway. 

“Dick must’ve removed the second tracer after we tracked him when the whole Trigon mess was happening. We can’t trace him.” 

Donna swore, before turning to Grant. 

“Deathstroke trusted you, right?” 

Grant nodded. 

“Yeah. Back then he did.” 

“Good. You’re going to write down all places you could think of where he could be keeping Dick. All of his safehouses, mansions, flats or even basements that he ever stayed in for longer than two hours. We’ll split up to check them out. Rose, Rachel. You two are staying in the Tower. You’ll manage the search. It’s also your responsibility to give Bruce out to Diana when she gets here and to keep an eye on Conner and Krypto. Jason, Dawn. You’re Team One. Gar and Hank are Team Two. Kori, you are Team Three. I’m Four. Grant, you’re Five. If anyone finds anything, contact Rachel and Rose and they will direct others to you. No one attacks before they know they have backup. Is that understood?” 

Gar frowned. 

“Why are you three going alone?” 

“Me and Kori can fight off Deathstroke for long enough on our own to let others come to our aid. And I’m guessing that Grant can too. This way, we can cover more ground. Everyone keeps their comms on at all times. If you turn it off, we’ll assume that you’re down and come to your aid. Got it?” 

Everyone nodded, before Rachel tilted her head. 

“What if Conner wakes up?” 

“Explain everything to him, and then tell him to stay here with you. In case Deathstroke decides he wants to attack the tower while we’re away.” 

The two girls nodded, while Grant looked up from the phone he had been tapping furiously on. 

“I just sent the coordinates off every place I could remember to your computer in the tower. This way, Rachel and Rose can coordinate us from here.” 

Donna nodded. 

“Good. Let’s do this.” 


End file.
